Chapter 192: Ai – Faraway – With Illustration
“Splash!”
The attack from Pretty Cure aimed at the knight’s elbow was caught steadily by the arm armor, which then pushed and sent it back in the direction it came from before returning a punch. Raindrops slid off as her clothes grazed against them. At this moment, the two seemed less like fighters and more like dancers performing a ballet in the rain.
Arms splashed with droplets in the rain. Lily’s body, still frail from her recent recovery, felt weak. Ash was in disarray with his heart elsewhere, unable to focus on battle. The two met in a standoff, but ended up parting ways quickly, with Ash fleeing.
“Guh—”
Just as she was about to chase again, a sudden sharp pain pierced through Lily’s abdomen beneath the Cure dress, her legs quivering from unbearable agony. She almost fell into the puddle in front of her when a strand of spider silk latched onto her wrist, pulling her up.
“Smack!”
Lily turned around instantly, gripping the strand of silk tightly.
“I’ve got you.”
A pale bolt of lightning flashed through the rain clouds, its brightness illuminating their rain-soaked faces, highlighting the peculiar game of cat and mouse.
“You’ve got me.”
In the densest of raindrops, Moonlight’s heels stepped across the curtain of water as she walked deeper into a small alley, stopping in front of a spider hanging from the roof by its silk, suspended upside down.
Lily recognized where they were; this was the alley where he first found her. It was here, at the corner where she stood, that he held an umbrella over her when she sat on the ground.
Was she going to begin recalling as the long-series anime characters did? No, there was a rule that time doesn’t flow backward.
At this moment, the clear light of the blue night revealed tears falling like a rain, finally meeting the one she had always wanted, not in a dream but now.
“Our meeting might be just a dream,” she said.
“Don’t say such things. We actually exist and are alive.”
But looking at Pretty Cure in the rain saddened him.
The wooden ring, once imbued with memories, was gone…
“Now standing before me must be Kamen Rider Timmons or Ash?”
For tonight, let’s avoid talking about Pretty Cure, the Desert Apostle, Kamen Rider. Only let us discuss the matters between Tsukikage Lily and Ash.
“…”
Ash placed both hands on the mandible of the web helmet, letting out a hissing sound as he removed the mask covering his lower face. A metallic clatter followed as it landed on the ground.
Ash’s lips unveiled a tender smile often seen during Nasta times, though in the rain, this smile seemed somewhat disheveled.
“Times past, I lost much yet gained much from you. So, wanting to find traces of my father’s warmth in you.”
“But you avoided answering and eventually left me…. You also said you couldn’t be my father, right?”
Closing her eyes, she could see Ash’s messy black hair and glaring jet-black eyes reflecting the sky’s light in the wind.
“You once lost your father, and mine left when I was six. Similar experiences used your emotional vulnerabilities against me.”
“Is this your past?” His indifferent tone caused her heart to tighten further.
“If I’d had a past, I’d wish for versions to choose from, wouldn’t it be more interesting?”
Lily recognized the sneer in Ash’s voice, showing he didn’t want to discuss past affairs, mirroring Lily’s proximity to truth.
“I want your ‘fruit’ while you desire my ‘trust’. We both willingly entangled ourselves like this.”
Shaking her head, she thought many had gentle gazes, but only one stirred emotions.
“I thought you would treat me gently and guide me with your eyes. But I was wrong, you’re no guide.”
In Ash’s seeming indifferent smile lies a similar inner vulnerability compared to hers, which Lily saw through completely.
“You prefer your belt. Hiding your true self behind a facade, obsessed with being the Kamen Rider. To us, Pretty Cure is merely power for world protection, but to you, the monster after transformation is who you truly are.”
His smile never changed while his words died down; confronting him now, Lily was far stronger, pushing him into corners repeatedly now.
“What about the Ash hidden under the Kamen Rider armor? Is he unworthy of love?”
“Flower,” Ash interrupted her fervent words, then shook his head, “That Ash may have existed, or vanished long ago.”
“After countless journeys and battles, numerous trials and forgettings.” His smiling face now bore weariness aside from fatigue, indicating some sort of understanding. “Now, the only thing I still feel is the longing for you.”
“And then I met you all….”
In the warmth and miracles of Pretty Cure, I discovered something my past friends lacked. I believe some part of you understands me, so…
“Moonlight. Doon will probably arrive on this planet soon. You are powerful already. Your father and Little Dark will become your power. Help me stop him, afterward…”
“Afterward, you?”
“… ”
“Flower, I don’t want to hurt you anymore. Either defeat me here or release me, you must choose.”
Rain poured harder while Ash was exhausted, deciding if Lily believed the world would be better without him, he wouldn’t resist.
“No, I won’t.”
Continuing forward, Lily didn’t wait for Ash to speak. She held his head steady, making him look at her with his one sight.
“Become more mature, Ash.”
“You are no longer a child.”
With the scent of rose flowers infused with Lily’s heart, the wind carried towards Ash.
Peck—
Ash couldn’t help licking his lips.
It was the taste of flowers.
He saw too that the ring she wore on her finger was put back not because it disappeared, but moved to her right middle finger.
Its incredibly soft, delicate feeling, carrying the delightful fragrance of a bud, made him feel utterly at ease as if his heart was enchanted.
Two stars like stardust scattered across the night.
They robbed each other of words.
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